Adams weighs plan to set up migrant tents in Central Park, other major green spaces
By Elizabeth Kim Aug 2, 2023gothamist.com
Mayor Eric Adams is considering a plan to shelter migrants inside tents in Central Park and other major public green spaces — a move that would place the city’s ongoing migrant crisis front and center in the eyes of New Yorkers as well as state and federal officials, according to two people with knowledge of the discussions.
Reports of the plan to shelter migrants in parks come as city officials say they’ve run out of room in homeless shelters and emergency housing. Since the weekend, scores of mostly male migrants have been camped out and sleeping on the sidewalk outside of the Roosevelt Hotel, an intake center in Midtown.
For months, the mayor has been sounding the alarm over the growing number of newcomers, sending a clear message to migrants at the border as well as state and federal officials about the crisis's severity.
“From this moment on, it’s downhill,” Adams told reporters on Monday. “There is no more room.”
Adams was slated to make an announcement alongside Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom regarding asylum-seekers on Wednesday morning, but canceled his appearance 40 minutes before it was slated to begin.
At the briefing, Williams-Isom said parks have long been under consideration, but she would not say how imminent the plan was.
"We are constantly looking at sites to see how we can accommodate people, but we need support and we think that the system is at a breaking point," she said.
One person who was briefed on the plan but not authorized to speak on the matter publicly told Gothamist that the city is also looking at erecting tents in Prospect Park in Brooklyn and Randalls Island, where officials briefly opened a tent facility on a parking lot last fall. On Tuesday, the Daily News reported that the administration is currently eyeing putting the tents on several soccer fields. That plan has sparked backlash from recreational users.
Fabien Levy, the mayor’s press secretary, would not confirm the discussions around putting tents in parks, but didn’t deny the plan was in the works.
“As we've said multiple times, with more than 95,000 asylum-seekers coming through our intake system since last spring, all options remain on the table,” Levy said. “Our teams run out of space every single day and we do our best to offer placements wherever we have space available. Children and families continue to be prioritized and are found a bed every night.”
“We still desperately need help from our state and federal partners,” he added.
In addition to requesting funding, Adams is imploring the Biden administration to grant asylum-seekers expedited work authorizations and urging the federal government to implement a so-called decompression strategy at the border that distributes newly arrived migrants among several cities.
When asked about the plan for tents in Central Park and Randalls Island, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine said he was concerned about the use of parks during the busiest recreation season.
But he also said the city was running out of traditional spaces for shelter.
“It’s a reminder we’re desperate for federal and state intervention,” he said.
Diana Ayala, a city councilmember who represents parts of East Harlem and the Bronx, said she had not been informed by the administration about its plan to shelter migrants in parks but said she was not surprised.
“There is no easy way to address this issue,” she said. "The most humane thing is to get people off the sidewalks.”
Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso said the state and federal governments must join with the private sector to support New York City.
"As I said previously, we know the private sector can be doing more to help our city meet the challenges of the migrant crisis," he said. "The city can and should work with the private sector on finding creative ways to keep roofs over the heads of our new neighbors — but ultimately it really comes down to getting adequate resources from the federal government."
This story has been updated with additional information and comment from Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso.
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